Churches open their doors for holiday tour

As the town’s tricentennial year comes to a close, a number of churches opened their doors on Saturday for a “Christmas Season Tour of Our Churches.”

The free tour ran from 1 to 4 p.m. and was organized by members of First Baptist Church of Dighton.

By Christopher Nichols

The Taunton Daily Gazette, Taunton, MA

By Christopher Nichols

Posted Dec. 16, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated Dec 16, 2012 at 4:04 PM

By Christopher Nichols

Posted Dec. 16, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated Dec 16, 2012 at 4:04 PM

DIGHTON

» Social News

As the town’s tricentennial year comes to a close, a number of churches opened their doors on Saturday for a “Christmas Season Tour of Our Churches.”

The free tour ran from 1 to 4 p.m. and was organized by members of First Baptist Church of Dighton.

“We wanted to have something because it’s the 300th anniversary of Dighton,” said Linda Gracia, treasurer at First Baptist Church. “So we wanted to have a way for the churches to be involved in the celebrations because the churches are so important to the history of the town.”

“We thought Christmas would be a good time to do it because all the churches would be decorated,” Gracia said, adding that the tour is a way for residents to “connect with one another during the Christmas season.”

During the tour, residents could freely come and go at the seven churches participating in Dighton and the Berkley Congregational Church in Berkley, which was once a part of Dighton.

At First Baptist Church, about 25 residents came for the tour, a turnout that pleased Gracia and others at the church. Many of them spent their time examining the decorations and discussing the history of the church and town, Gracia said.

“I think all of the other churches were pleased with the turnout and enthusiastic about the event as a whole,” she said.

“(The tour) was great,” said Myrna Santos of Dighton Community Church. “People were very interested in the history. We’ve got such a tremendous history at the church. It’s amazing.”

With music playing from the church’s custom organ, First Baptist offered its guests cookies, refreshments and a display about the history of the church.

Founded in 1780, First Baptist Church of Dighton is the second-oldest church in town. It is surpassed in age only by Dighton Community Church, founded in 1770.

The West Dighton Christian Church, which also participated in the tour, dates to 1772, but its current church was built in 1790, according to the church’s website.

The town of Dighton was founded on May 30, 1712.

The Tour of Our Churches event is one of the final events in the town’s tricentennial celebrations that included a candlelight walk on the Fourth of July, a special Founder’s Day ceremony, a Canoe/Kayak adventure, the town’s first Taste of Dighton, a Tricentennial Parade and Ball, a Holiday House Tour and a number of events at the Dighton Public Library and Dighton Intertribal Indian Council.

On Dec. 21, the Tricentennial celebrations will conclude with Christmas carolers dressed in colonial attire at the Dighton Community Church.